The Japanese giant shocked the world of motorsports when it abruptly announced last December that it would not be participating in Formula 1 in 2009.

The Japanese giant shocked the world of motorsports when it abruptly announced last December that it would not be participating in Formula 1 in 2009. An insider at Honda, who asked to remain anonymous, gives us his take:

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On Honda's departure from F1
"The decision, while made public late last year, was actually made earlier in the fall. Honda is a frugal, no-nonsense company, and when the writing was on the wall that new car sales were going to be horrible for some time, the company couldn't legitimize spending $250–$300 million a year on something like F1, employing hundreds of people to race two cars in one series.

Why do you think Brawn GP has been so successful?
"Not taking anything away from what Brawn GP have done, but after the absolutely dismal "Earth car" of 2007–2008, the company focused almost all of its efforts on the car for this year. To get an idea of how important this was, toward fall of last year, Honda CEO (Takeo) Fukui held a video conference — not to talk about Honda's dismal car sales...but the horrible state of Honda's F1 program, which he called an 'embarrassment.'"

Honda's future in IndyCars?
"From what I hear — and this could certainly change as a result of the current state of auto sales — Honda will continue in IndyCars, even if the formula switches to a 4-cylinder turbo. The company is looking forward to competing with other engine manufacturers."